Polish judge suspended in row over court shake-up

There have been protests, such as this one last month in Warsaw, against the judicial shake-up

A Polish judge who challenged the conservative government’s changes to the judiciary has been suspended and hit by a 40% salary cut.

But the EU’s top court has questioned the political independence of the body that suspended Judge Pawel Juszczyszyn.

It is the latest twist in a long-running battle between Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party and the EU Commission, which accuses PiS of undermining the independence of judges.

PiS says legal reform is long overdue.

Opposition MPs said the judge’s suspension amounted to “political persecution” of someone who was merely applying EU law, the BBC’s Adam Easton reports from Warsaw.

There have been street demonstrations against the government’s legal changes and defending judicial independence.

EU dispute

Mr Juszczyszyn was apparently punished for demanding that parliament provide a list of people who supported candidates to the National Council of the Judiciary, the newly politicised body that chooses Poland’s judges.